The New York City Council quietly postponed an oversight hearing on school integration originally scheduled for February 26. This delay appears to be a direct response to the Trump administration’s February 14 Dear Colleague letter, which provided new guidance on the Supreme Court’s 2023 Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard (SFFA) ruling. This new guidance seeks to significantly broaden the reach of the SFFA ruling beyond the authority of the Department of Education and the Office of Civil Rights.
However, the hearing’s postponement — along with Mayor Eric Adams’ recent directive for City officials to avoid criticizing the Trump administration and his willingness to cooperate with its deportation plans in exchange for support with his own legal troubles –– raises concerns. Many New Yorkers may now question whether the City will continue to stand as a stronghold against the Trump administration’s harmful policies.
Last May marked 70 years since Brown v. Board, prompting reflections on its legacy and the work still needed. In partnership with Nyah Berg of New York Appleseed, I co-authored, From Crests to Valleys: NYC’s Battle for Integration 70 Years After Brown, a report analyzing New York City’s action on school integration. Our analysis found that despite past progress, the city is actually regressing.
Between 2014 and 2019, school integration efforts gained significant momentum. Findings from a 2012 New York Times article exposing New York City segregation were furthered by a groundbreaking 2014 UCLA report on New York State segregation spurring policy and advocacy action. Longstanding integration advocates at New York Appleseed were joined by emerging youth-led groups such as IntegrateNYC and Teens Take Charge, the New York State Education Department (NYSED) launched a grant program to fund school diversity and culturally responsive education initiatives, and NYC electeds began the passage of new laws and policies that furthered diversity initiatives and programming across public schools. Despite significant momentum between 2014 and 2020, due largely to the COVID-19 pandemic, addressing segregation fell by the wayside.
In 2021, New York City elected Eric Adams as mayor. Since then, his administration has largely dismissed, and at times opposed efforts to combat school segregation. Under Adams and former Chancellor David Banks, the city reversed key policies aimed at reducing segregation in selective programs, reinstating middle school screening, reversing equitable changes to high school admissions for screened programs, doubling down on inequitable gifted education models, and threatening or repealing entirely, funding for key programming such as restorative justice and the K-12 culturally responsive curriculum titled Mosaic.
And while many principals and superintendents prioritized integration efforts within their schools and districts, the lack of urgency from centralized City leadership –– and the absence of meaningful support –– significantly slowed progress. The silence on this issue is particularly deafening in the face of dangerous national rhetoric and the Trump administration’s recent executive orders on K-12 education signaling a broader push against diversity and inclusion efforts, threatening local initiatives, and reinforcing segregationist policies.
While the delay of the oversight hearing does not spark optimism, I am hopeful the City Council sets a new date and invites the many students, parents, educators, and community members who have spent time preparing testimony to attend. Despite being under a system of Mayoral Control, the City Council does have the power to make an impact on school segregation. In November 2019, the Council passed Local Law 1552, requiring the creation of district diversity working groups in each community school district. However, this law has never been implemented or enforced.
During the same session, additional legislation was proposed: Public Advocate Jumaane Williams sought to codify the School Diversity Advisory Group, former Education Chair and Councilmember Mark Treyger introduced a bill to mandate reporting on NYC public school staff demographics, and former Council Member –– now Comptroller and mayoral candidate –– Brad Lander proposed expanding reporting under the School Diversity Accountability Act.
The City Council has a crucial role to play in advancing school integration, but meaningful action requires follow-through on these commitments.
American public schools are more segregated today than in the 1960s, fueling deepening divisions along race, class, identity, and politics. Project 2025 represents a federal assault on public education and the most vulnerable students and communities served in our schools. Now more than ever, we need City leadership unafraid to protect our public schools, and to tackle the historic divisions like school segregation that have brought us to this moment.
This year’s mayoral election presents a crucial opportunity for New York City to elect a leader committed to addressing the lasting harms of segregation in our schools, and protecting our most vulnerable community members from the Trump agenda. Mayoral candidates are beginning to articulate their positions on this and other issues, and voters need to demand clear plans for action.
It is also essential for elected leaders to assure New Yorkers that we will be protected from the Trump agenda. Instead of complying in advance, we need to double down on investments in the important work of diversity, equity, and inclusion. NYC was once a national leader in integration and educational justice –– it must reclaim that role, especially in the face of the Trump administration’s attacks on public education.
Matt Gonzales, CEO of Liberation Spaces LLC, is a former teacher, community organizer, researcher, and policy expert based in NYC.
which is amazing under a year ag0 I was j0bless in a h0rrible ec0n0my. I thank G0d every day I was blessed with these instructi0ns and n0w its my duty t0 pay it f0rward and share it with Every0ne
Go 0N My Pr0file